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Hi all,

This photo was taken over the weekend. Thought I would share it with you. ISO 200, f/7.1, 1/200, 27mm focal length with kit lens (18-70mm ED).



Comments please. PS. I think the sky could have been a little bluer. I need to buy a circ polariser filter very soon, since this shot taken into the sun.

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Bill,

mrbillf wrote: PS. I think the sky could have been a little bluer. I need to buy a circ polariser filter very soon, since this shot taken into the sun.

A cpl certainly helps with the sky, but you don't have much sky, other then the reflected one, and that is a nice blue, imho.

Having taken that shot into the sun, the branches come out under-exposed, try bringing them out a bit, then I think the photo would work much better.

Cheers,

Radar

mrbillf wrote:Hi all,

This photo was taken over the weekend. Thought I would share it with you. ISO 200, f/7.1, 1/200, 27mm focal length with kit lens (18-70mm ED).

Comments please. PS. I think the sky could have been a little bluer. I need to buy a circ polariser filter very soon, since this shot taken into the sun.

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Bill.

I believe that the tree leading into the image is a little out of focus, which may be overcome by stopping down the aperture (a higher number). Also if you're interested, do a search on hyperfocal focusing and learn a little bit about that to learn how to get the foreground to background into focus.

Also, the sky is white because of the limitations of the D70. Because you've exposed for the shadow details, some of the highlights get lost, you can either find a happy medium or purchase a graduated neutral density filter, although in this case that would make all the detail up the top darker as well.

Another option is to shoot on a tripod and bracket your shots, then merge them later in photoshop.

A good compositional idea though with the tree leading into the photo although I feel that the tree is also blocking the shot as well.

Hope these comments help you mate.

Cheers,
Owen.

mrbillf
The image is a scene without a cause. It has too many elements competing for visual attention. The tree seems to be the main subject but has no feature to catch and hold the eye. The pond is broken up by the tree into a number of weaker elements. The picture lacks a visual hook....that is, something that catches the eyes attention without having to go searching for it. Next time you take a picture ask yourself, "What is my subject?". If you can't answer specifically then you need to isolate, simplify and exagerate. Landscapes generally need a foreground...but not an empty foreground....middle ground and background. They also need some unifying element to link them together. Something in the foreground can often do this. Landscape photography is also notoriously bloody difficult and the photographer needs everything to work with him....the scene, the light, the land, the colours and good luck. Your image is a good attempt and everytime you "see" a landscape your skills will get sharper. Thanks for posting.

I agree with Matts comments,

Not sure of the intended subject
The busy background prevents the tree from standing out.
nice colours on the water though

Steve

Thanks again guys, your comments are well accepted and acknowledged. I will certainly consider those ideas next time I'm out shooting lanscapes.

Then again I might stick to taking soccer action shots. Might post one of them next time round. It'll be a hard act to follow with the footy POTW.

Cheers,
Bill